High Point - Rider Comments
The Aussies dominated the 450 class and a hot blooded American won the 250 class and here are all the comments from the winners, podium men and everyone else.
Jett Lawrence: “I needed to make sure I didn’t make a mistake any bigger than the one I made on the start [of Moto 2]. Eli [Tomac] and Hunter [Lawrence] were gone, and I saw AP [Aaron Plessinger] and knew I had to do the best I could, which was third place. I didn’t know how much time was left when they flew the red flag, but thankfully I was third [to secure the overall].”
Hunter Lawrence: “I know my capabilities on the bike, so after the first moto I knew I needed to improve on my start and a few other small things. But that all went out the window when the rain came and then I knew that the first lap could likely determine how the race would play out.”
Eli Tomac: “It was like I had two different days [Moto 1 to Moto 2]. It’s such a different experience racing out front versus being in the chaos, so it was good to make things easier on myself in Moto 2. It was a breath of fresh air.”
Haiden Deegan: It was pretty much a perfect day. We got two good starts. In the first one, I was in the lead by the second lap, and in the second moto, I was in the lead by the second turn. So yeah, it was a perfect day – 1-1 and a little rebound from last weekend. Now we get a weekend off to get ready for Southwick.
Tom Vialle: The last two results haven’t been where I wanted them to be, so coming in here, the plan was for sure to be on the box, and we accomplished that. Looking forward to the weekend off, I feel comfortable at Southwick, and we’ve done a lot of work these last couple of weeks, so I am looking at turning things around and hopefully getting another good result.
Levi Kitchen: I felt like I made some real progress today. My starts were better. I almost went down in moto two, but managed to recover. Overall, I’m definitely improving and feeling stronger out there. Finishing on the podium feels great, even if it wasn’t exactly the result I was aiming for. I’ve always had a tough time here at High Point, with my best finish before today being 10th, so it’s awesome to see improvement here. I’m looking forward to the weekend off to recharge and then hitting the next round fired up.
Aaron Plessinger: High Point was a good day. First moto, I got a good start, then Jett [Lawrence] stalled it, and I led for a little bit, but I got a bit tight for a while there, and I finished P3 in that one. Second moto, I didn’t know it was going to rain and I picked the wrong goggles. [My] tear-offs were gone, had to pull in, and then pretty much straight after that, we got red-flagged. Overall, still P4, so I can’t be too mad! We’ll have a weekend off and get ready for Southwick.
Garrett Marchbanks: It was a solid day overall. Qualifying was probably one of my worst in a while, 18th overall. I felt fast, but the clock didn’t agree. In moto one, I got shuffled off the start and had to work from the back again. I charged all the way up to sixth, but Jo [Shimoda] got me with two turns to go, so I finished seventh. Frustrating after putting in that much effort. In moto two, I got a better jump but still got pushed back early. I followed Levi [Kitchen] for a bit, got around him, and found some solid lines. I worked up to fourth and tried to close in on the top three, but they were just a bit too far. Overall, happy with the speed, I just need to keep working on my starts over the break.
Ty Masterpool: Riding felt pretty solid all day. I’m still working through being sick, but I just switched nutritionists, so things are heading in the right direction. Unfortunately, I threw up again after moto one, but with all the new food today, it’s going to take some time for my body to adjust. The speed is there, the fitness is there, I just haven’t been able to keep food down, which makes things tough. We’ve got a little break now, so I’ll get everything dialed and come back ready to go.
RJ Hampshire: All in all, it was a really solid weekend. I came out with another P6 in moto one and felt like I rode well, then the skies opened in moto two, and it became all about survival. Another weekend in the six-to-eight range, so we’ll make use of the weekend off and go to work, get stronger, and aim for that top-five at Southwick.
Jason Anderson: My weekend was pretty middle of the road. In the first qualifying session, I was sixth, then in the second one I was eighth for eighth overall. In moto one, I battled my way to get seventh, then in moto two, I started at the front of the field. I feel like I should’ve finished fifth or sixth in that moto, but I had to take my goggles off and had a tip-over. The rain was pretty crazy, and I ended up going 7-7 for seventh overall. The results show progress, but I still want to be better.
Jorge Prado: It was a difficult weekend. After the first qualifying session, we made some changes that helped me put a fast lap together for second qualifying. In the first moto, I had a pretty good start, but I struggled the first lap to get some passes and was getting arm pump, which caused me to drop back a bit. The second moto was a mudfest. Hopefully, now with the next two weeks, we can improve a lot and bounce back for the next part of the season. Hopefully, we can make some big changes and improve to be battling up front.
Joey Savatgy: I was happy with that ride considering the start [in moto one]. Once I had clear air, my lap times were strong. The heat took a toll late in the race, so I conserved energy and focused on where I could improve for moto two. That was brutal. We knew we were capable of a top six, but the weather made it extra tough. Still, it felt good. We stuck to our plan, the team stayed positive, and I had fun racing. This is where we belong, and we’re going to keep pushing.
Julien Beaumer: It was a tough day in High Point for me. Moto one was going good, and then I crashed with three laps to go. Moto two, better start, and I made some good passes on lap one, but then I had a good crash at the mechanic’s area. We’ll rest up now and get ready for Southwick.
Ryder DiFrancesco: My second moto was much better than the first at High Point. It was a step in the right direction before the weekend off, and I’m excited to go down to Florida to get to work with the team, so we’ll come out swinging for the next one.
Casey Cochran: Back to the East Coast for High Point, and overall, it was a decent day. My starts were good again, and the early moto pace was good, I just need to work on keeping that going, and hopefully I can be up there with the guys and battling for podiums. I’ll keep doing what I’m doing, keep building, and be ready to come out firing at Southwick.
Nate Thrasher: It was a lot better day for me. I got two good starts, a holeshot in the first one, and led some laps. I was in second for a while, but I just wasn’t quite comfortable with that pace and got a little tired, a little tight, and kind of dropped back. In the second moto, we still had some fight left. I came out really well again after the start, got into the lead, and then cased that wall double and went back a couple of positions. The middle part of the moto wasn’t too great, but the last four laps, I found a good flow. It was a big improvement for me. We’re just going to keep chipping away at it and getting better every weekend.
Michael Mosiman: It was a tough situation. I had a stomach bug that I got in Colorado last week, and have just been fighting it all week. We tried to get better, but it’s just dragged on. I’ve been trying to hold it together, but I had nothing in the tank today, literally. It was a rough second moto. I crashed on the start and had no rear brake for the whole moto, and got back to 20th. We’ll regroup and have a good weekend in Southwick in a couple of weeks.
Kayden Minear: Today was a bit of a rough one. I had a couple of crashes in the first moto, so I was going into the second moto pretty sore, but we made it through. My riding was actually pretty solid in the second one, so we’re taking the positives and looking forward to the sands of Southwick.
Drew Adams: The day started strong. I qualified fifth in both sessions, so I was feeling good heading into the motos. In moto one, I just didn’t get the start I needed and honestly didn’t ride like myself. Ended up 16th. In moto two, I got off to a decent start and was moving forward, but had a little tip-over. Got going again, made up a few spots, and then unfortunately went down a second time and broke my left index finger. I’ll get it checked out, start some therapy, and do everything I can to be ready for Southwick.
Seth Hammaker: High Point was a solid day. I went P7 in the first qualifier and P3 in the second. I felt good heading into the motos. In moto one, I got a decent start, around third or fourth. Levi [Kitchen] got by me early, but I found my flow and moved back into third about halfway. Pumped to grab my first moto podium, I’ve been working toward that for a while. Moto two wasn’t as strong. I started around 10th, made a few passes, but just didn’t have the stamina to keep the pace. I faded and had to ride it in and ended up 14th. Still, a lot of positives to take away. We’ll reset over the break and come into Southwick ready to go.
Austin Forkner: The track was tough all day today. They were prepping for rain, but luckily, we didn’t get any. It meant the track itself was a lot harder than I’d ridden in the past, and it made things a little unpredictable. I qualified well, and then in race one, I got a decent start, but it was chaos going into the second turn. I clipped someone’s back wheel and went down. After tha,t I rode pretty well, though. In the second moto, I got pinched off at the start but was beginning to settle in when I had a small issue with the bike, which ended my race. We’ve got a weekend off now, so we’ll keep working and come back stronger for the next one.
Jordon Smith: It’s been a decent day at High Point – not the results we’re looking for, but we continue to make improvements, which is important. My starts were a lot better, especially in that second moto, so hopefully we can build on that. It’s just tough that even with those good starts, I made a few mistakes in the race. We’ll keep fighting and look ahead to the next round.
Mikkel Haarup: Time practice went ok – it took me a while to learn this track because it’s so long with loads of jumps to get right. In the first moto, I made a few mistakes early on but was able to fight my way back into the points by the end. I got a lot better start in the second moto, but again made a mistake, which dropped me down the order a little. I fought my way back into seventh, so overall, I’m happy with my performance. We’ll keep on improving from here.
Jalek Swoll: My day was ok – we came here to High Point without any set expectations, so I’m happy with how things have gone today. My foot is still giving me some pain, and my cardio isn’t where it should be, but overall, things went well. I faded in the first moto a little but was able to see the boys’ pace up front, which gives us a good idea of where we’re at. Second moto, I was able to hang in there for eighth, which is a really good start. Obviously, I want more, so I’m already looking forward to getting some more races under my belt and seeing what we can do.